Letter from the editor
Welcome to issue three, friends. I hope August treated you well and September is running towards you with open arms. This month we are all about new adventures and new beginnings. As the summertime fades out and
the air starts to crisp, to me, it feels more like a new year than January 1st. It’s the change of a season, the start of a new school year, and jumping back into routine after summer. Maybe you’re starting high school, maybe you’re packed up for college, but wherever you look, fresh starts are very present in the fall.
In this issue, you will find new contributors as well as our OGs, a delicious recipe, and a collection of photos from our August adventures that I really just adore. Without further ado, issue three.
-Danielle
Modeled by Ain Imchen and Danielle Ledoux Photographed by Bethellen Ledoux
Ingénue now Album
Lust for Life– Lana Del Rey
Book
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Movie
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty directed by Ben Stiller
Podcast
Conversations with People who Hate Me hosted by Dylan Marron
What we’re currently loving
Ready player one From a Rundown Abode to Surrounded In Code Payton Musco
Ready Player one begins with our character, Wade Watts, who lives with his abusive aunt in what is known as the “Stacks”. These are tall collections of mobile homes that serve as housing for the poor, outside of large cities like Wade’s own Oklahoma City. Wade lives in a collapsed United States economy, driven into the ground by the complete resource crisis. However, he does not spend much time in the real world. He spends most of his time in the OASIS. The OASIS is a virtual reality simulation that
is meant to give players the experience of travelling between worlds, all within their relatively small OASIS device. Everything in the game simulates reality. Money requires real money. Death entails a total restart. Power is hard to achieve. Wade is at the bottom of all of these virtual totem poles. He is a virtual high school student who has a government-issued OASIS. This all changes though when creator and owner of the OASIS, James Halliday, dies. In his will he stipulates that he has hidden an
Easter egg in the OASIS, and the one that finds sion, and chaos among this already crazy situit first will win control of the OASIS and his ation. Although there are some more dull secentire billionaire fortune. tions due to the love interest between Parzival There are three keys that open three doors, and behind the final door will be the egg. Years Pass. Until one day when Parzival (Wade’s avatar name) is the first user to find the first key, along with fellow gunter (Easter egg hunter) Art3mis. This kicks off a scramble between the gunter clans, and the evil corporation, the IOI, to find the egg and claim their fortune. Our character Parzival and his four friends are thrown into the mix, and need to defend their home in the OASIS by keeping the reigns out of the vile IOI’s hands at all costs.
and Art3mis, I understand that it is necessary in developing them each as their own characters. I felt as though Aech’s character, while interesting, was somewhat under-developed and mostly one-sided, serving only as a brother figure to Parzival. Every other character in the novel had some quirk about them and it created some interesting interactions between opposed characters. The ending of the novel is simply amazing. It not only shows how immersed our main character was in the OASIS, but also brings our story full circle and shows us how great a postapocalyptic world can be when with somebody you love. Wade has multiple chances online and in real life, and by the end he finally gets what he needs, even if it isn’t what he (or I) thought that he wanted.
This novel is amazing at creating a story that the reader cannot put down. As I read I was constantly on my toes, and trying to decipher the riddles that the main character needed to solve himself. It kept the cogs in my brain constantly turning and developed characters who made me feel genuinely entangled in this digital race Overall this novel is a great page turner, and creates learning moments, loving moments, taking place. and some straight up badass moments that There are some great moments where the au- made my adrenaline pump more than any book thor subverts what we expect, creating confu- has ever done before.
An Ode to August Thank you for the warm weather and the adventures. I’ll see you next year with sun kissed skin and a peach iced tea in hand.
Washington State Submitted by Shelby Phillips
Amsterdam Submitted by Dahlia Roberts
Rolph Pond Submitted by Liberty Pelletier
Dirty Paws—Of Monsters and Men Nova Scotia 500—Boyscott Lust for Life—Lana Del Rey We are the Kids—Walk the Moon
Marco Polo—Boyscott Heatstroke—Brick and Mortar Mountain Sound—Of Monsters and Men Sleep on the Floor—The Lumineers
Photographed by Aisling Macaraeg
Week long friends Photo and article submitted by Aisling Macaraeg
This year I went on my second mission trip to Frederick, Maryland. For those that do not know, a mission trip, at least for my church, is a journey to somewhere bringing Christ's love to others by helping His people, normally through housework and such. Don’t worry I’m not going to go into how awesome Jesus is, instead, something at mission that we do. On the first night, we get something called a crew. It’s normally five to six people, and you spend the next week with them for around eight and a half hours everyday working on a project. The first night is always really awkward, you just say your name, where you’re from, and the usual first time meeting you questions. Throughout the week though, you become close, I’d even say I became friends with some of my past crew members. At the end of the week, we all exchange social media usernames, and phone numbers, but most of the time you know you won’t stay close in touch. Generally, we all come from
different states so that makes it tough to stay friends, and I don’t consider keeping a streak friendship either. So at the end of the day, we’re all just friends for that one special week. I really enjoy that one week with them. You get to become friends with complete strangers you would never meet otherwise. Never seeing them on Instagram or Snapchat beforehand, you just have to be brave and start up a conversation. Asking questions about their interests, families, and lives all before liking or retweeting a post. Getting to know them without talking to your friends about them first. How often does that happen nowadays? Meeting and talking to complete strangers, as long as they’re not totally creepy, is really fun for me. I wish I struck up a conversation with strangers a lot more, but it can be intimidating sometimes. So don’t be scared guys, go talk to strangers! (as long as they seem friendly and not murders) Make a new friend!
Chef beanie’s Trail mix Ingredients
The essentials: Dark chocolate m&ms
Dry Ingredients: 3 cups rolled oats 1 cup raw almonds, chopped (optional)
Raw almonds The extras: Homemade granola (see recipe)
Crasins Other nuts Coconut flakes Cereal
Wet Ingredients: 1/2 cup raw honey or maple syrup 2 tsp melted coconut oil (or other oil) 1 tablespoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix all desired ingredients to- Instructions 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. gether. Mix dry ingredients in a glass Store in a mason jar. baking dish and toast them in Enjoy! This is a great mix for the preheated oven for 10-15 hiking, the beach, day trips, minutes, stirring occasionally. car rides, or even just as an af2. While the oats are toasting, ternoon snack. combine the wet ingredients. Homemade granola Recipe from: thelivefitgirls.com
3.,After the oats are toasted (they should be very aromatic), drizzle the honey mixture over the oats. Stir until well com-
bined. 4. On a baking sheet lined with wax paper form a single layer of the oat mixture. If you want to make clusters, form the granola into chunks so it dries together.
5. Place the baking sheet back in the oven and turn the oven OFF. this will allow the granola to finish toasting without burning. Let it sit in the oven for 5-8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
Back to school chic Styling and Modeling by Emily Puchalski Photographed by Alysha O’Mara
Ribbed Laced Tank Top -Pacsun $22.00
Ripped Jeans -- American Eagle $49.95
Hooded Bomber Jacket -American Eagle $20.00
Black Low-top Converse -DSW $34.95
Adidas Cropped Hoodie - Pacsun $60.00
Low-rise Jeans -- Aeropostale $26.00
Black Low-top Converse -- DSW $34.95
Below:
White Button Down Blouse -- Charming Charlie $30.00 Mid-rise Dark Wash Jeans -- American Eagle $19.99 Black Scarf -- Poshmark $10.00 Sandals -- Hollister $8.00
Above: Grey Ribbed Cropped Tank Top -- Charlotte Russe $7.99 High-waisted Blue Jeggings -- Aeropostale $20.00 Black Cardigan -- Goodwill $8.00 Combat Boots -- Amazon $29.04
Above: Adidas Cropped Hoodie -- Pacsun $60.00 Contrast Striped Sweatpants -- Forever 21 $15.90 White Adidas Sneakers -- JCPenney $49.99 Left: Burgundy Lace Top -- Forever 21 $20.00
Black Skater Skirt -- Forever 21 $10.00 Ankle Buckle High Heel Booties -- Amazon $49.99 Right: Bohemian Romper w/ Crochet Detailing -- Forever 21 $21.00 Knit Knee High Socks -- AC Moore $5.00 Black Boots -- Payless $39.99
On moving ahead Words I needed to hear
I think we all know that things will never lie still and nothing will remain the way it is, and yet we are still shaken up and sad when we are forced to move on. We have no control over time racing ahead of us, but we refuse to run with it and are left being dragged behind by the rope attached to our ankles. Why? What is telling yourself you’re still standing where you were even worth? How can this be called coping? It’s not helping in any meaning of the word. It’s isolating. It is not a crutch but the injury itself. You need to live fully awake. If you sleep, or even walk tiredly, there is no chance to appreciate where you are in the ex-
act moment because moments never repeat. You cannot go back and wake yourself up. You need to race as fast as time, but you need to recognize the feeling of the wind in your hair and the soft ground beneath your feet. You need to be curious and excited for the new ground you are covering each and every day. You cannot repeat. You cannot repeat. Nobody will wait for you and it’s hard to catch up and wake up at the same time. Stay awake. Don’t stop running. Start fresh with every breath. Things are changing. Experience them. You are allowed to remember but do not drag your heels. Go. Run.
Thank you to our contributors
Chef Beanie
Alysha O’Mara
Ain Imchen
Liberty Pelletier
Bethellen Ledoux
Shelby Phillips
Catrina Ledoux
Emily Puchalski
Aisling Macaraeg
Dahlia Roberts
Payton Musco
Edited by Danielle ledoux